ABL
AFL
- Both Optus Stadium and Adelaide Oval have been part of “very compelling pitches” to host the grand final ahead of the imminent venue announcement, according to AFL fixtures boss Travis Auld.
- The AFL today released the 2021 Toyota AFL Finals Series brand campaign, ‘The Best of Us’, that tells the story of a season that could be the hardest fought AFL Premiership in the history of the game.
- Ahead of the 2021 Toyota AFL Finals Series, Coles has launched its latest campaign to tell the story of why Australians love this great game so much.
- The West Australian Football Commission (WAFC) has declared Perth is in pole position to host the AFL Grand Final, with Victoria’s COVID-19 lockdown set to see the decider moved for the second-straight year.
- Tasmanian footy fans were quick to snap up tickets to this weekend’s AFL elimination finals with both games at Launceston’s UTAS Stadium a sell out.
- A DECISION to move the Northern Tasmanian Junior Football Association grand finals from UTAS Stadium to allow for an AFL elimination final to be played has been described by some parents as “gut wrenching.”
- Geelong coach Chris Scott has called on the AFL to host all finals at neutral venues from next week as the Cats prepare to fly from Adelaide to Perth.
- The AFL and the Tasmanian Government have reached an agreement on a timeline for a decision on the state’s entry to be the big league.
- The AFL has agreed a decision on whether a standalone team from Tasmania will enter the league will be made in early 2022, after negotiations between AFL CEO Gillon McLachlan and Tasmanian Premier Peter Gutwein over a timeline were finalised on Tuesday.
- The AFL is strongly considering pushing the start of the AFLW season back to January amid uncertainty around the national COVID-19 situation.
NRL
- The Redcliffe Dolphins remain the clear frontrunners in the race to become the game’s 17th team after talks with the ARL Commission’s expansion committee
- While the Jets, Dolphins and Firehawks were all pleased with their presentations as they look to become the NRL’s 17th team, they were given no solid guarantee that expansion would happen.
Rugby
- The remainder of The Rugby Championship will be played in Brisbane, Townsville and the Gold Coast and in an unlikely twist, the centenary Test between the All Blacks and Springboks will be played at Queensland Country Bank Stadium.
- Australian Rugby doesn’t need a marriage counsellor, just a little respect
Broadcast and MEdia
- Nine-owned Stan Sport will air UEFA Europa League qualifier matches featuring Scottish football clubs Celtic and Rangers following significant public interest around the games in Australia. The qualifiers for the Europa League sat outside of Stan Sport’s deal with UEFA, announced in June, to broadcast the Champions League, Europa League, Europa Conference League, Super Cup and Youth League.
- All-electric SUV racing series Extreme E has extended its global broadcast partnership with sports streaming subscription service DAZN.
- According to the ECB, a total of 16.1 million people tuned in to see some of the competition on television, which Sanjay Patel, managing director of The Hundred, pointed out is “more eyeballs than the men’s World Cup in 2019”.
New Zealand
- NPC, Farah Palmer Cup (FPC) and Heartland Championship matches, as well as all community and school rugby this weekend has once again, been cancelled or postponed due to COVID-19 restrictions, New Zealand Rugby (NZR) has announced.
